Review: Slammed

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Title: Slammed [#1 Slammed]
Author: Colleen Hoover

Synopsis:

Following the unexpected death of her father, 18-year-old Layken is forced to be the rock for both her mother and younger brother. Outwardly, she appears resilient and tenacious, but inwardly, she’s losing hope.

Enter Will Cooper: The attractive, 21-year-old new neighbor with an intriguing passion for slam poetry and a unique sense of humor. Within days of their introduction, Will and Layken form an intense emotional connection, leaving Layken with a renewed sense of hope.

Not long after an intense, heart-stopping first date, they are slammed to the core when a shocking revelation forces their new relationship to a sudden halt. Daily interactions become impossibly painful as they struggle to find a balance between the feelings that pull them together, and the secret that keeps them apart.

I’m pretty sure I’ve said that I first found this book through the voting period for GoodRead’s awards. I didn’t have a clue what it was about, but from the cover, I strongly suspected it was about poetry. Once I got it, I found that it was about a lot more.

Hoover weaved a realistically tragic story for both Layken and Will, that was captivating and amazingly written. I fell in love with all the characters in this book, and every side of them (even spiteful Lake, and jealous Will). I loved Eddie and Gavin together, and of course Calder and Kel, who are so fantastically weird. But what I loved more than the amazing characters was the breathtaking and, at times, extremely clever, poetry.

Pieces like “Schooled”, Will’s sacrifice piece (“Lake”?), “Death”, “Better than Third”, and all the other ones, they blew me away. The depth that was conveyed through the poetry written in this novel was jarring. Hoover brought to light lessons and ideas that people often do not want to confront, like death, like moving on from loss, like confronting people you just hate in that moment in time. I loved how with each piece, we got a peak into every characters mind, their past, and their feelings.

Aside from all of that, there were a lot of realistic life lessons in this book, like Julia’s criteria when it comes to men.

“Does he treat you with respect at all times? That’s the first question. The second question is, if he is the exact same person twenty years from now that he is today, would you still want to marry him? And finally, does he inspire to be a better person? You find someone you can answer yes to all three, then you’ve found a good man.”

I’ve never read a book like Slammed, and I am really glad I decided to pick it up. Memorable, heart-breaking, and enthralling, this story will stick with you long after you finished. Amazing.